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betta help 0.o

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ok i got home from work and found my betta with 1/4th of his tail missing in back right in middle of it.he uslay sticks himself to filter instead of swimming so i wondering if his fin weakened some n got ripped off from it. anyways i was wondering if theirs anything i can do? hes having a hard time swimming n im worried 0.o

he sticks himself onto filter all the time i mean he litterly swims over to it adjust himself then sticks to it just so he can stop swimming -.-.He also removes himself from it too so hes not really stuck its more like just somthing to hold him to be lazy. its a topfin 10. only thing i could find with a weak flow so betta wouldn`t be pushed around by flow. his tank is full of live plants-anubis,mossballs,sword plant,java n some other random ones that are some kind of hybrids. he also has a little rock castle decor for him to sleep in. Nirates-0/nitrites-0/ammonia-0/ph is about 7.5

Ahh, I know this problem well. You have a filter sitter for a Betta. I've seen this several times, where Betta actually LIKE the feeling of letting their fins get wrapped around the filter intake. They aren't sick, they aren't weak, can pull away easily, but just, well, like it. Its a bad habit, a sensation they like for whatever reason, and its really damaging to their delicate fins. Some even like to wrap their whole bodies around the intake, and even their their "beard" fins sucked off. Be forewarned, fin rot after damage from a filter intake sitter, is imminent. I've had three filter sitters myself, and over the years my other Betta keeper friends have had this happen, a whole fin torn off in a matter of minutes.

To correct this, simply use an intake cover. You can buy one, or make one yourself. To make one, buy a piece of filter sponge, cut it so its not huge, and down the center cut a pocket with a steak knife so you can pull the sponge over the intake like a sleeve. Don't cut all the way through, so its more like a sock over it. This way, when your fish friend tries to cuddle up to the intake, the fins can't get pulled in.

In the meantime, I'd recommend using a 1/4 recommended dose of aquarium salt in the water until the fin is healed, to stave off any infection or fin rot setting in.

yah i figured aquarium salt too atm hes kind of just sitting around almost completely tail less ._. im not sure if he is going to make it or not like i said he still hasn`t ate yet and he uslay eats 3-5 pellets 2x a day xD hes a pig >.> going to put some aquarium salt in snice i changed 80% of water just now for him wanted to make sure it was nice n clean. hes been staying FAR FAR away from filter now and not swimming anymore.

as for filter thats a great idea i kind of just been shoveing the floating plants i have agiest it to make a shield of sorts lol

i hear some people say, "i kept a goldfish in a bowl and it lived for a year."
they don't know how lucky they were and all goldfish live at least 15 years in proper conditions.
that is equal to saying my human lived in his closet for 5 years!